Understanding SIEM: Visibility is Everything

Recap: This is part two of a six-part series. In our introductory post for this series of six, we described our journey to reshape cybersecurity for small businesses in New Zealand, seeking to deliver a consolidated stack of modern products in partnership with US security firm, Todyl. We introduced the need for decentralized firewall security and round-the-clock protection against cyber threats. Partnering with Todyl allowed us to extend their global network into New Zealand, making enterprise-level cybersecurity accessible to small Kiwi businesses for the first time.

Understanding SIEM: Visibility is Everything

As we continue to unpack our new Todyl consolidated security stack, it’s time to delve into Security Information and Event Management (aka SIEM). SIEM is all about visibility. Security without visibility is like trying to play a game of chess blindfolded. Without seeing the board or your opponent’s moves, you’re left guessing and unable to strategize effectively, making it easy for your opponent to outmaneuver you.

While SIEM is not an active protection tool, such as antivirus or a firewall, we cannot overstate its importance, especially in an era where cyber-attacks are a daily fact and successful data breaches are on the rise.

This is why having clear visibility across the entire security and technology stack is crucial in combatting threat actors. Any blind spot heightens the risk of a successful attack. Threat actors utilize increasingly sophisticated techniques, fueled by the widespread availability of hacking tools and services, to evade detection.

So let’s explore what SIEM is, why it’s important, and how Layer3’s Todyl SIEM solution is uniquely positioned to take your cybersecurity to the next level.

What is SIEM?

SIEM stands for Security Information and Event Management. It combines two critical cybersecurity functions: Security Information Management (SIM), which involves the collection and analysis of log data, and Security Event Management (SEM), which focuses on real-time monitoring, correlation of events, notification, and incident response. Together, these functions provide a holistic view of an organization’s security landscape, enabling the detection of patterns and anomalies that may indicate a cyber threat.

Here’s a look at some of the important stuff that SIEM makes possible.

• Comprehensive Visibility: SIEM provides a bird’s-eye view of your entire IT infrastructure, from on-premise networks to cloud services, ensuring that no potential threat goes unnoticed.
• Proactive Threat Detection: By analyzing log data in real-time, SIEM can identify suspicious activities early, allowing businesses to respond to threats before they escalate into serious breaches.
• Regulatory Compliance: Many New Zealand businesses are subject to regulatory requirements that mandate the monitoring, logging, and reporting of security incidents. SIEM helps businesses comply with these regulations, avoiding potential fines and legal issues.
• Efficient Incident Response: SIEM tools often include features for automating responses to common threats, reducing the time and resources required to address security incidents.

Why SIEM Matters for New Zealand Businesses

SIEM has typically been a security tool reserved for corporate and enterprise organisations. However, it would be wrong to discount the importance of SIEM for small businesses as well.

Here is another analogy. Imagine you own a small shop on a busy street. You’re the owner, the manager, and the cashier. Think about all the things happening at once in your shop – customers coming in and out, inventory moving around, money exchanging hands, and so on.

Now, let’s say there’s a sneaky thief who wants to steal from your shop. They might try to distract you while their partner grabs something valuable, or they might sneak in when you’re not looking. This is where Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) comes in.

SIEM is like having extra eyes and ears in your shop, helping you keep track of everything that’s happening. It collects information from different sources, like your cash register, security cameras, and alarms, and puts it all together. So, if something fishy is going on, like someone trying to mess with your inventory or access your computer systems, SIEM can alert you right away.

You might think, “But I’m just a small shop, why would anyone want to target me?” Well, let’s get real. Hackers don’t just go after the big fish. They often attack indiscriminately, and while small businesses might offer a hacker less reward, they also usually have much less security to in place to stop them.

So, having SIEM is important for small businesses too. It helps you catch any suspicious activity before it becomes a big problem, just like having a security system in your shop helps you catch thieves before they get away with anything. It’s all about keeping your business safe and secure, no matter how big or small it is.

Todyl’s SIEM Solution for Kiwi Businesses

Layer’s managed cloud SIEM offering from Todyl is designed to be both accessible and affordable for Kiwi businesses. Here’s a look at the many features and benefits that are worth knowing.

• Proactive Threat Detection: By analyzing log data in real-time from many sources (think your local Endpoints, Microsoft 365, Microsoft Azure), SIEM leverages machine learning and a powerful correlation engine to identify suspicious activities early, allowing businesses to respond to threats before they escalate into serious breaches. By mapping detection rules to the MITRE ATT&CK framework, organizations can promptly address threats and vulnerabilities.
• Integrated Threat Intelligence: Todyl enhances its SIEM capabilities with global threat intelligence, ensuring that businesses are protected against the latest cyber threats.
• Visibility: Visibility across the entire security and technology stack is crucial in the fight against threat actors. Todyl’s Managed Cloud SIEM provides real-time visibility across endpoints, users, networks, and the cloud, enabling organizations to detect, investigate, and respond to threats effectively.
• Integrated Threat Hunting and Case Management: The solution includes managed threat hunting dashboards and an integrated case management system, facilitating proactive threat hunting and streamlined incident response. Automated case creation and correlation of related incidents provide context-rich data for effective security incident management.
• Cloud-Native Design: Todyl’s SIEM leverages the cloud to offer scalability and ease of deployment, removing the need for extensive on-premise infrastructure. As a cloud-based solution, Todyl handles ongoing optimization globally, reducing the time and effort required for SIEM management.
• User-Friendly Interface: With a focus on usability, Todyl’s SIEM dashboard presents complex data in an accessible format, making it easier for businesses to understand their security posture and make informed decisions.
• Collaborative Security: Todyl’s SIEM facilitates collaboration between internal teams and external partners, ensuring that all stakeholders can effectively contribute to the organization’s cybersecurity efforts.
• Managed Detection Rules: Todyl’s Detection Engineering team actively manages high-fidelity rules, dashboards, and reports to identify suspicious indicators, detect anomalies, combat alert fatigue, and expedite investigations. This pre-built value significantly reduces setup time and enhances operational efficiency.
• Customization and Flexibility: Organizations can tailor custom rules and dashboards to their specific needs. Additionally, Todyl offers flexible data retention periods, ranging from 7 days to 5 years, based on individual requirements.
• Comprehensive Integration and Reporting: Robust integrations across endpoint, network, users, hardware, and cloud services offer a holistic view of the organization’s IT environment. Pre-built dashboards and visualizations deliver immediate insights, while persona-based dashboards enable targeted action based on role-specific information.
• Collaborative Security: Todyl’s SIEM facilitates collaboration between internal teams and external partners, ensuring that all stakeholders can effectively contribute to the organization’s cybersecurity efforts.

Summary

A SIEM solution is an important tool for New Zealand businesses of ALL sizes. Our integrated SIEM platform delivers the real-time visibility required to effectively detect, investigate, and respond to threats across endpoint, user, network, and cloud.

In simple terms, SIEM is like a security guard for your business’s digital world. It keeps an eye on everything happening in your systems – like who’s logging in, what files are being accessed, and if there are any signs of trouble.

It’s not just about spotting problems – SIEM is part of a whole suite of tools that work together to keep your business safe. It’s like having a team of security experts watching over your digital assets 24/7, so you can focus on running your business without worrying about cyberattacks.

This isn’t just for big companies with tons of data. Even small businesses need and deserve advanced, modern protection from cyber threats. Hackers don’t discriminate based on size – they’ll target anyone they can.

That’s why Layer3 is so motivated to make SIEM accessible for small businesses and why have partnered with Todyl to make that happen.

Next Up in this Series

Stay tuned for our next post in this six-part series, in which we’ll explore one of the most powerful components of the Todyl platform: Threat Response, also known as MXDR (Managed Extended Detection and Response).